Galz Protests Mpilo Hospital's Intersex Surgery Announcement
Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) and Trans and Intersex Rising Zimbabwe (TIRZ) have protested an advert sent out last week by Mpilo Hospital calling on people with ambiguous genitalia to register with the hospital to undergo medical examination.
The announcement Mpilo reportedly said that cases of the condition were increasing in Matabeleland and South Africa mostly due to historical migrations.
Said GALZ and TIRZ in a statement on May 17:
Galz and TIRZ are deeply concerned by the intended genitalia surgery for Intersex people by Mpilo Central Hospital. The intention; whose tag line is “Restoration to normalcy” reinforces an archaic belief that intersex people are abnormal therefore need to be “fixed”.
It is clear from the advertisement that some Zimbabwean health care providers use the label “disorders of sex development” to describe intersex traits, the term unnecessarily suggests that intersex traits and bodies are unhealthy or defective, contributing to intersex stigma.
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Ambiguous genitalia is a condition in which an infant’s external genitals don’t appear to be clearly either male or female. In a baby with ambiguous genitalia, the genitals may be incompletely developed or the baby may have characteristics of both sexes.
Galz and TIRZ have appealed to the Ministry of Health and Child Care and Mpilo hospital to suspend the intended surgeries. It has asked that safe spaces for dialogue with all interested stakeholders, including Intersex Community members, development agencies and other government departments such as the Registrar General’s office to be created to create guidelines and policies that enable improved quality of life for the affected people.
More: Daily News
